Honda Fit vs Honda Civic

Comments

Since you brought up the Corolla, I thought I would mentioned that we rented one while on a recent trip and, for something with only 126hp and an antiquated 4-speed auto, it performed amazing well around town as well as on the highway. The plain-jane exterior and interior are not going to impress your neighbours, but it sure didn't drive like an economy car. It would be interesting to see how the re-designed '09 Corolla would fare.

My wife and me bought both. Her&#146;s a 2008 Civic DX and me a 2008 Fit Sport Auto. Civic is a more quieter comfortable ride with better MPG. But my fit has awesome room for its size. Both for drive/passangers and cargo.

I was on this forum a month or so ago gathering information to help me in deciding whether or not I would be happy with a Honda Fit. I wanted to summarize my research and purchase experience in case it is of value to anyone else and to thank all the contributors to this forum whose postings helped me directly or indirectly with my decision.

I fell in love with the Fit because of its wonderful interior versatility and its small car advantages of good mpg and reasonable purchase price. In the past I have generally bought used cars unless a tremendous new car deal was available. I needed to switch from my current 2000 5 speed Saturn (30-40mpg) to an automatic of some sort because of a hip problem.

I thought the Fit was perfect for my needs but had two reservations: 1) I needed cruise control but could only get it in the Sport model which had trim and extras I really didn&#146;t want 2) I thought both Fit models appeared to have low bodies that might be problematic in the mud season driving here in Vermont deep muddy ruts on the dirt roads and some pretty good sized potholes on all roads

In researching on this forum I began to see another potential problem and that was inconsistent mpg that are being reported on the Fit. I knew that the most important factor for me in my new car (besides reasonable comfort and safety) was economy I want my vehicle to be as inexpensive as possible to maintain and drive.

I continued to explore these three questions and got the following impressions: 1) Probably a good aftermarket cruise control can be installed on the base model by Yipes Stripes, etc for about $500-600. Or there is a Toyota dealer in Canada who will do it at the Toyota shop (though they subcontract it out to other mechanics). The cruise control requires an extra stalk on the steering column.

2) I found occasional complaints in the forums about scraping bottom going over bumps but most people weren&#146;t overly concerned about it. One Vermont driver I spoke to in a parking lot here said she had actually gotten hung up on some rocks and mud in her Fit on a rutted dirt road.

3) Good mpg on the Fit just didn&#146;t seem as likely with the Fit as with a few other vehicles. I know that for me, personally, economy is more important than driving enjoyment and if I spent the relatively large sum (for me) to buy this car, it would be really frustrating if I had to work and research ways of getting my car into the 30-40mpg range.

4) On the good side, I found a dealer in Danbury, Connecticut who had a lot of Fits available and good prices. That was nice, because our Vermont dealers get only one or two a month and they are usually pre-sold.

Anyway, my final decision was to go for a used Civic. My budget was about $15,000. I found a 2005 Civic LX with 32,000 miles. Lease trade-in from the dealer and all the maintenance had been done there. I bought it for $12,700 ($13650 &#147;out the door&#148;) with 2 warranties; Honda Certified Warranty for 12 months and powertrain warranty for 7 years/100,000 miles. Two weeks into it I am happy with my decision. The first tank of gas gave me about 31 mpg in my around town driving. I haven&#146;t yet done any highway to know how it goes but am hopeful it will be as good as the old Saturn at around 40mpg.

If I didn't need the interior space/versatility of the Fit, I might have gone for the Civic (although I'd probably buy a Corolla over a Civic), but the versatility of the Fit far outweighs the potential better MPG of the Civic. We're a family of 4 (3 yr old and 5 month old) and it's much easier getting the kids in/out of the Fit because it's higher up. The cargo space behind the 2nd row holds a lot, plus there is space under the 2nd row for the diaper bags, toys, paper towels, and all of the other kid stuff. All of this far outweighs the potential MPG improvement of the Civic. Emphasis on the word "potential" since most people seem to be getting mpg in the 30s for both the Fit and the Civic. That's what I'm averaging.

But if the car is just to be used by one or two people and you don't need any more interior cargo space that what's offered by the Civic's small trunk, then I'd go for the Civic or Corolla.

Yes bought them the same day both with less than 4 miles on them. Drove them on the same road home, at the same speed. Since we have gotten them home drive them on same roads and conditions. My wife is a lead foot and I try to cheat for my little fit. But she is getting about 8 MPG better than me on her Civic.

Okay, I was just wondering if the Civic was being driven more on the highway since buying it, but it sounds like they're both getting the same amount of highway/city miles. And I guess they're both manual or both autos?

I currently own a 2008 Fit M/T Sport and I am getting gas mileage on the upper end for the Fit (no problems there). But I have read and heard so much about global warming and climate change that it really makes me want to do more, and get better mileage with my current car than I am getting right now. I have highly considered trading the Fit in for a Civic Hybrid; I wouldn't buy the Prius, I am too loyal to Honda to go over to the darkside. My question, is it worth it? Should I take the financial hit if wanting to do more is that important? Will I really make that much difference by driving the HCH?

Consider also the environmental impact of making a new car, in this case the Civic Hybrid. Maybe it would be lower impact overall to keep your Fit as long as possible, keep it in tune, and drive it as economically (and as little) as possible.

I appreciate your environmental concerns and congratulate you on your earth smart purchase of a Fit. Honestly if you want to minimize your carbon (and all other footprints) the best steps you can take is to not have kids, don't base your lifestyle (travel/consumption/home) on travel by fossil fuel, and educate others.

The earth cannot sustain the open pit mining, manufacturing processing, or recycling impacts of enough batteries to power anything close to a significant number of cars in the world. IME it doesn't make sense to haul heavy, bulky batteries in a vehicle anyway.

Long before I'd invest in a hybrid (especially from what you're driving now), I'd look into conserving energy at home and then look into solar, wind, or geothermal powering of your home.

I'm new to USA and new to the automotive world (esp cars)...I will be here for about 3-5 years... so i want to buy a used car... but i could find any good cars... so ppl suggested me to look for new car in honda....I'm thinking towards honda civic LX model. I need the car for good mileage... not for luxury with leather seats and all.... Can somebody let me know if i can go for Honda FIT as it is bit cheaper than civic.Also let me know any equivalent good mileage cars in Nissan or toyota.....

sorry if this question has been repeated.....Expecting a reply soon...Thanks guys....

But i had a look at the cars, i do like the civic only for its MPG.I'm not that much fond of cars. Just wanted a kind of decent vehicle with good resale value and it will be used as a commuting vehicle.....

I really dont mind about the space of the car so that is why i thought of looking at civic coupe. I would be the only user of the car.

Since the cars are running as hot cakes i could get a best quote from the dealers.... so i'm now catching up for any used car from honda, toyota or nissan cars with mileage around 50-60K.....

Not sure of what might happen next.... should be a :lemon: or will i get a :shades: car.....???????